A few peaceful minutes passed.
The apartment remained unusually quiet.
The only sounds were the occasional chirping of birds outside the open window, the distant hum of traffic from the streets below, and the soft breeze drifting through the curtains.
For once, nobody seemed to be in a hurry.
It was nice.
Traveling together had been exciting, but it had also been exhausting. Between exploring the city, trying new food, taking hundreds of photos, and constantly walking, everyone had needed this unexpected break.
Chai eventually wandered into the kitchen.
He opened one cupboard.
Then another.
Then another.
Malai raised an eyebrow.
"What exactly are you looking for?"
"Something to eat."
She stared at him in disbelief.
"You literally had lunch before your nap."
"I know."
"And?"
"I'm hungry again."
Kit wasn't even awake yet, and Chai was already thinking about food.
Some things would probably never change.
Suraphom chuckled quietly without looking up from his phone.
"I think you're always hungry."
"That's because I'm preparing for unexpected situations."
Malai folded her arms.
"What kind of unexpected situation requires cookies?"
"You never know."
He pulled out a bag of crackers and held it up triumphantly.
"What if I suddenly get hungry?"
"You already are."
"Exactly."
Everyone laughed.
I leaned my head lightly against Chak's shoulder again.
The apartment felt peaceful.
Comfortable.
Almost like home.
Chak glanced down at me.
"Still tired?"
"A little."
His hand immediately found mine, his fingers intertwining with mine naturally, as though they had done it a thousand times before.
"I don't mind standing here."
"Neither do I."
For a brief moment, I simply enjoyed the warmth of his hand.
There was something comforting about how natural everything between us had become.
No awkwardness.
No hesitation.
Just quiet understanding.
The front door of one of the bedrooms creaked open.
Kit slowly stepped into the hallway, rubbing one eye with the back of his hand.
His hair was sticking out in every possible direction.
He looked around the apartment with obvious confusion.
"Why is everyone awake already?"
Chai looked at him for a long second.
Then he burst out laughing.
"Oh wow."
Kit frowned.
"What?"
"You lost."
"Lost what?"
"The battle against your pillow."
Malai covered her mouth, trying not to laugh.
"It really won."
Kit instinctively touched his hair.
"Is it that bad?"
"It's impressive," Suraphom answered calmly.
"I've never seen gravity lose so badly."
Even Chak let out a quiet laugh.
Kit sighed dramatically.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear any of that."
He walked over to the sofa and dropped onto it with a groan.
"What time is it?"
Suraphom glanced at the clock.
"Almost five."
Kit's eyes widened.
"Five?"
"We all overslept," I admitted.
"I thought we'd been asleep for thirty minutes."
"So did we."
Kit leaned back against the sofa.
"I actually feel... surprisingly refreshed."
Malai smiled proudly.
"See? I told you naps are magical."
"They're dangerous," Chai corrected.
"You close your eyes for thirty minutes and wake up in another time zone."
That earned another round of laughter.
Just then, the same bedroom door slowly opened.
Taeng stepped out, blinking several times as he adjusted to the afternoon light.
He froze when he noticed everyone looking at him.
"Why are you all staring at me?"
"We're waiting to see if you're actually awake," Chai answered.
Taeng looked around in confusion.
"I overslept."
"You did."
"I never oversleep!"
Kit smiled.
"Congratulations."
"It finally happened."
Taeng let out an embarrassed laugh before scratching the back of his neck.
"I was having the nicest dream."
"What was it about?" I asked.
He smiled sheepishly.
"I found the perfect place to photograph the sunset."
Anamarija's eyes immediately lit up.
"Then today's your lucky day."
Taeng looked at her.
"Why?"
She pointed toward the window.
"The view from Ljubljana Castle is one of the best in the city."
His sleepy expression disappeared instantly.
"Seriously?"
She nodded.
"You'll be able to see the entire old town, the river, the red rooftops... and if the weather stays like this, the sunset will be beautiful."
Taeng's eyes sparkled with excitement.
"I'm fully awake now."
"I noticed," Chai muttered.
Everyone laughed once more.
Only one bedroom remained silent.
Torn's and Chai's.
Chai slowly looked toward the closed door before glancing back at everyone.
"So..."
He grinned.
"Should we rescue Sleeping Beauty?"
Malai burst into laughter.
"I knew you were going to say that."
Even Torn wasn't awake yet, and somehow he had already become the center of everyone's jokes.
Chai rubbed his hands together dramatically.
"I volunteer."
Malai raised an eyebrow.
"That sounds dangerous."
"It probably is."
He walked toward their room, trying his best to look serious.
The rest of us watched with amused smiles.
When he reached the door, he knocked gently.
"Torn?"
Silence.
He waited a few seconds before knocking again.
"Honey. it's time to wake up."
A muffled groan came from the other side of the door.
"Mmm..."
Chai grinned.
"I'll take that as a sign of life."
No answer followed.
He leaned a little closer to the door.
"Come on. We're going to Ljubljana Castle."
Another groan.
"I don't want to..."
The entire living room burst into laughter.
I had to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing too loudly.
His sleepy voice sounded exactly like a child who didn't want to get out of bed.
Chai crossed his arms.
"Unfortunately, staying in bed isn't one of your options."
"I disagree..."
"You don't get a vote."
"I do."
"You don't."
"I really do."
Malai laughed so hard that she had to hold onto the back of the sofa.
"Poor Torn."
"Poor me?" Chai protested. "I'm the one negotiating with him."
Suraphom chuckled quietly.
"I've seen hostage negotiations with less resistance."
Even Chak let out a quiet laugh beside me.
A few moments later, the bedroom door slowly creaked open.
Torn stood there wearing an oversized T-shirt, his hair sticking up in every direction.
His eyes were barely open.
Chai smiled innocently.
"My Sleepy beauty."
Kit shook his head.
Everyone laughed again.
Torn slowly walked into the living room before collapsing onto the empty armchair with a tired groan.
Chai sat down on the armrest beside him.
For a second, complete silence filled the room.
"We overslept"
Then everyone burst into laughter again.
"Honestly," Suraphom agreed, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye, "that's actually impressive."
Torn looked completely confused.
"What?"
"Thailand is 5 hours ahead of Slovenia ," Suraphom said.
"So?"
"It's 10 p.m. in Thailand right now.". Suraphom said.
Anamarija smiled as she watched everyone.
"I think the nap was exactly what all of you needed."
"It definitely was," I agreed.
I looked around the apartment.
Only a little while ago, it had been completely silent.
Now it was filled with laughter, conversations and footsteps as everyone moved around.
The sleepy atmosphere had slowly disappeared, replaced by excitement for whatever came next.
Anamarija clapped her hands together.
"All right, everyone."
The conversations gradually stopped.
She smiled at us.
"Is everyone finally awake?"
One by one, everyone nodded.
Even Torn raised his hand lazily.
"I think so."
"You think?"
"I'm about ninety percent awake."
"The remaining ten percent can wake up on the way."
That earned another laugh.
Anamarija pointed toward the large window.
Beyond the rooftops of Ljubljana, the castle stood proudly on top of the green hill, illuminated by the warm afternoon sun.
"There it is."
Everyone instinctively turned to look.
For a brief moment, nobody spoke.
The castle looked even more beautiful than before.
Its stone walls glowed softly in the golden light, standing watch over the old town below.
Taeng slowly stepped closer to the window.
"Wow."
He whispered it almost to himself.
"It looks incredible."
Anamarija smiled proudly.
"I told you."
She looked back at us.
"And the view from up there is even better."
A wave of excitement spread through the room.
Taeng was already checking his camera settings.
Kit stretched his arms above his head.
"I hope we're taking the funicular."
Anamarija laughed.
"We are."
Kit let out a relieved sigh.
"Oh, thank goodness."
Chai looked offended.
"What? You don't want to walk up the hill?"
"I do."
Kit smiled innocently.
"I just don't want to arrive looking like I climbed a mountain."
"I was about to say the same thing," Torn mumbled.
Malai laughed.
"Don't worry. We'll save your energy for exploring the castle."
I looked out the window one last time.
The castle stood quietly above the city, almost as if it had been waiting for us all afternoon.
A smile found its way onto my face.
Another adventure was about to begin.
Anamarija looked around the room, making sure everyone was finally ready.
"Okay," she said with a satisfied smile. "Before we leave, everyone check if you have everything."
Almost immediately, everyone reached for their pockets or bags.
"My phone..." Kit muttered, patting his jeans. "Got it."
"My wallet," Malai said, slipping it into her crossbody bag.
Taeng unzipped his camera backpack and carefully checked every compartment.
"Camera..."
He lifted it slightly.
"Extra battery..."
A second battery disappeared into one of the pockets.
"Memory cards..."
He nodded to himself.
"Perfect."
Chai watched him with amusement.
"You prepare for photography like Chak prepares for business meetings."
Taeng looked up.
"Pictures are serious business."
"I stand corrected."
Suraphom quietly stood from the sofa and adjusted his jacket.
As always, his eyes instinctively swept across the apartment before stopping on Anamarija.
"Ready whenever you are."
She smiled appreciatively.
"Thank you."
I couldn't help noticing that.
Suraphom rarely spoke much, but he never stopped paying attention to his surroundings. Even while relaxing, he was always making sure Anamarija was safe.
It was simply part of who he was.
Chak picked up his phone from the coffee table before slipping it into his pocket.
"You ready?" he asked, turning to me.
I nodded.
"I've been ready since Anamarija mentioned the castle."
He smiled faintly.
"I figured."
I looked around one more time.
Everyone was moving around the apartment, putting on shoes, grabbing light jackets and checking their belongings.
The apartment that had been so peaceful only half an hour ago was now filled with conversation and laughter.
It felt... alive.
Chai suddenly froze in the middle of the hallway.
"Wait."
Everyone looked at him.
"I forgot something."
He hurried back toward the kitchen.
A few seconds later he returned, proudly holding the same bag of crackers.
Malai sighed.
"Seriously?"
"What?"
"You can't survive one afternoon without snacks?"
"I can."
He paused dramatically.
"I just choose not to."
Kit laughed.
"You're unbelievable."
"I prefer 'well prepared.'"
"I've heard that before," Malai muttered.
"You'll hear it again."
Everyone laughed.
Even Torn smiled.
"I give him twenty minutes before he opens those."
"Fifteen," Kit corrected.
"I was thinking ten," I added.
Chai looked offended.
"You all have so little faith in me."
Suraphom glanced at the crackers.
"Five."
For a second there was complete silence.
Then the room erupted with laughter.
Even Chai couldn't hold back a grin.
"Fine."
He raised the bag.
"I'll prove every single one of you wrong."
"We'll see," Malai said.
Anamarija shook her head, smiling to herself.
"I don't know whether I should be impressed or worried."
"Impressed," Chai answered immediately.
"Worried," Kit corrected.
"Definitely worried," Torn agreed.
Anamarija laughed before opening the apartment door.
A pleasant breeze drifted inside, carrying the sounds of the city with it.
The afternoon sun had begun its slow descent, bathing the streets in warm golden light.
"It's beautiful outside," she said.
I stepped into the hallway beside Chak and glanced out through the building's window.
The rooftops of Ljubljana glowed beneath the afternoon sun.
Somewhere in the distance, church bells rang once again.
For a brief moment, I simply stood there, taking it all in.
This city felt different.
Slower.
Calmer.
There was something about it that made me want to stop rushing and simply enjoy each moment.
I felt Chak's fingers gently brush against mine.
Without saying a word, he intertwined our hands.
I looked up at him.
He smiled softly.
"You've been smiling a lot today."
"Have I?"
He nodded.
"I like seeing you happy."
His words made my heart skip a beat.
"I am happy."
More than I could put into words.
Anamarija looked back at us from the hallway.
"Come on."
She smiled brightly.
"Ljubljana Castle isn't going anywhere..."
She paused with a playful grin.
"...but the sunset won't wait for us."
Taeng immediately adjusted the strap of his camera.
"Then what are we waiting for?"
With laughter echoing through the hallway, we followed Anamarija downstairs, ready to discover another beautiful corner of Ljubljana together.